Bio

I  came into consciousness bouncing on the couch for hours to "Meet the  Beatles," "Calypso," "Mother Goose with a Beatle Beat," "Tonight: In  Person The Limelighters," and many more. 

My dad bought a cassette tape recorder when I was in elementary school.  I spent  hours recording myself. Among other things I imitated Dickie Goodman by creating humorous [or so I thought :-)]narratives and asking questions that had musical answers taken from snippets of popular songs.  Later I would overdub by using two recorders, playing, talking, or singing along with something I'd already recorded.

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After  failed attempts at violin and trumpet and countless hours in my rocking  chair listening to Jimi Hendrix, The Who, The Rolling Stones,The  Ramones, Sex Pistols, Clash, Television, Johnny Thunders, The Jam and  much, much more, I started playing drums in college.  That branched  out to harmonica and guitar.  I started writing so-called  songs.  Punk rock was a real catalyst.  It was something I  could understand.  It was something that I could do.

I  started playing drums in college and am very grateful for my teacher  Terry Engeman.  I added harmonica and then guitar.  I remember my step  mother listening to me practice one day and commenting, "You're very  enthusiastic." 

Fresh   out of college I got into my first band: Plate of Shrimp.  I had  just  moved down to the Washington, DC Area. My friend, Ed Schuster, also  a  recent transplant from Western Pennsylvania, played drums.  We  had  talked about putting something together. Then I met Dana Cann in the   Mt. Pleasant section of DC.  We both dug Jonathan Richman and hit  it  off.   The three of us started practicing together.   Soon  we played  gigs at places like DC Space, the Safari Club, Ft. Reno Park,  The Grog  and Tankard, The Back Alley Cafe and even the Electric Banana  in  Pittsburgh.  Along the way, our name changed to something a more  macho:  the Stallones.    (No one had gotten the "Repo Man" reference anyway.)  Our rotating   cast of bassists featured Rob Bayne, Joe Marencic, Luis Harris, and   Jeff Cross.  Unlike Spinal Tap no one spontaneously  combusted.  Dana's  amp did catch fire at DC Space though--really!!!

Late   childhood led to early adulthood and the band broke up.  I spent   years in the basement (and later upstairs) writing and recording.    Some of the results can be heard HERE and HERE:  

Teaching and Music

I  became a middle school teacher and my students became my new  audience.  We wrote songs together.  I wrote songs (and  created dances) for them such as "The Latitude-Longitude Dance" and  played historical songs, especially those about the settling of the  American West.  My students inspired me too.  One young man,  Randy, was very interested in UFOs. His obsession caused me to  write "The Roswell Rock."

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I took over sponsorship of the school's Open Mic Club when the original sponsor, Sarah Kane, left our school.  I  appreciated the genius idea but must admit that my first feeling was,  "Oh, no!  Another distraction from MY music!"  Nothing could  have been further from the truth!  Though requiring of time and  effort, sponsoring the club was an inspiration.  First and  foremost, it gave kids who weren't served by other school activities a  chance to develop their talents and confidence.  The side effect,  though, was that I grew as a performer.  I grew more confident and  comfortable on stage as I helped others to do so. 

Another  inspiration: my membership in the Virginia Organization of Composers  and Lyricists (VOCAL).  Associating with Richmond's best  songwriters and performers helped me to grow musically.  

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I  came to an important realization as I started to perform more.   Performing makes me a better musician.  I also started to  appreciate the connection that music makes between people.  My  favorite venues in the Richmond area are farmers markets: St. Stephen's,  Birdhouse, Manakin, and Carytown among them.  I love to sing  outside on a beautiful spring or summer morning or afternoon, the  dappled sun shining through the green leaves of the trees, children  toddling about or bouncing in their parents' arms, vendors cheerfully  connecting with folks as they talk about their passion for farming,  baking, cooking, brewing kombucha, or making their crafts.   Sometimes there are llamas, rabbits, or chickens in the audience.   (I have a particularly active chicken fan club. :-D).

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Carrying  the connection idea further, I developed a love for busking.  I  found deep satisfaction in standing out on the sidewalk and singing my  songs.  I watch the people walk by: families, friends out for a fun  evening, couples on a date, individuals headed somewhere or nowhere,  cars and motorcycles revving their engines, a man carrying a sign saying  something about Confederate money and yelling at the top of his lungs  (I couldn't compete with him.  I would just strum when he passed  :-D).  I enjoy being on the same level as my audience, exchanging  smiles, talking, making new friends.  I somehow feel more a part of  the world when I busk, like I'm doing my part in helping the world to  go about its daily business.  When I busk, I often look up at the  sky and think about how lucky I am to get to do it.  My favorite  spot for busking in Richmond was in Carytown.  I've brought my love  for busking across the Atlantic and enjoy playing here in  Rotterdam.  I love watching the sunset while I play at the  Rijnhaven.

I've  found that diversity is the key to musical success. Thus I'm playing in  all sorts of situations here in Rotterdam. I sing in church two Sundays a month. The Niemand Minder Sessie Band plays a wide range of Dutch and English-language covers plus a few of my originals.   Guy G. Gorman and Friends focus a little more on the Elvis/Johnny Cash aspects of my repertoire.  The Guys play folksy, bluesy, Americana. The GEMMS play about 50/50 originals and covers--happy and poppy.  I play bass in Schering en Inslag--a mostly Dutch language band focusing on originals.  Guy G. Gorman and the G-Men  remains as my solo recording nom de guerre. And the Stallones have been reborn!